Winnipeggers relieved as Waverley Street underpass opens early - Action News
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Manitoba

Winnipeggers relieved as Waverley Street underpass opens early

Winnipeg commutersno longer have to fret about long delays due to trains in the city's southwestwith the opening of theWaverley Underpass over the weekend.

Traffic began flowing through the intersection on Sunday

Cars pass through the newly opened Waverley Underpass on Monday morning. (Shannah-Lee Vidal/CBC)

Winnipeg commutersno longer have to fret about long delays due to trains in the city's southwestwith the opening of theWaverley Underpass over the weekend.

The City of Winnipeg confirmed Sunday evening that after years of construction, the newly built Waverley Underpass is now open.

Construction crews will continue to workin the area until November, with limited disruption to road traffic, the city said. Some lanes still weren't open at the start of rush hour Monday.

The project, which was approved by council in early 2016, was initially slated to be finished by August 2020 with a $155 million price tag.

It included replacing the existing railway crossing at Waverley Street and Taylor Avenue with an underpass, fixing up Waverley Street and expanding Taylor Avenue to four lanes.

An artist's rendering of what the proposed Waverley underpass would look like when completed. (City of Winnipeg)

Much to the surprise of residents in the city, the underpass opened ahead of schedule.

In a statementThursday, the city said it would shut down traffic to the area from Friday evening at 5:30 p.m. to 6 a.m. Monday as it preparedto open the long-anticipated route.

Last week, the City of Winnipeg said the road would be open by Aug. 19, 2019. On Sunday, roadblocks were taken down a year and a day earlier than expected.

Commuters no longer have to worry about coming to a halt at the Waverley Street railway to let trains pass now that the underpass has replaced the crossing. (CBC)

Mayor Brian Bowman has saidthat an estimated 40,000 vehicles pass through the intersection every day.